


The Older I Get

by Ennuiwolf



Category: ARGONAVIS from BanG Dream! AAside (Video Game)
Genre: Adulthood, Angst, Future, Gen, Loneliness, Longing, Memories, Post-Canon, time skip
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-29
Updated: 2020-09-29
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:54:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,713
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26711764
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ennuiwolf/pseuds/Ennuiwolf
Summary: Was this what being an adult was?Endless patience for people who would never come? Never having the time for friends? Being all consumed by work?In that case, Ren didn’t like it.
Relationships: Nanahoshi Ren & Goryo Yuuto & Matoba Wataru & Kikyo Rio & Shiroishi Banri
Comments: 3
Kudos: 24





	The Older I Get

**Author's Note:**

> This work was inspired by the Tokyo Autumn Session by Honeyworks, and it takes place 7 years after the end of Argonavis anime

_Why is it…if our meeting was supposed to be fate, that we’re slowly drifting apart like this?_

“Sorry, Ren,” the apologetic voice of his leader sounded through the phone. “I got held up at work. I won’t be able to make it. Let’s reschedule, alright?”

Ren leaned back against the park bench, his mouth letting out a soft breath that came out as a mist in the cold Tokyo autumn. However, his heart felt empty and heavy as he lifted his gaze to the sky slowly being obscured by rain clouds.

“Guess Yuuto’s not coming either,” he murmured.

As his eyes flickered over the other pedestrians strolling by, he realized that he must look quite suspicious, sitting by himself. But then again, he’d been getting quite used to sitting alone recently.

Sighing, he got up and left as the chilly breeze of an incoming rain made him wrap his scarf around himself more tightly.

Was this what being an adult was?

Endless patience for people who would never come? Never having the time for friends? Being all consumed by work?

In that case, Ren didn’t like it.

It had been seven years since he had met Yuuto and Wataru, and since they had formed Argonavis.

The five members had been quick to find out after coming to Tokyo that running a band was more than expensive, especially since the label backing them wasn’t as large as Gyroaxia’s.

Yuuto was the first to “fall”, so to say, somehow managing to land a full-time job as a consultant at an advertising firm once they graduated. None of them complained, since the money he brought in allowed them to continue to run the band well.

However, he was quickly found to be pressed for time.

To fill in some of the free time they suddenly found themselves with, Wataru and Rio had begun writing and composing for other acts. While they started out marketing themselves as an inseparable duet, time constraints began to see them writing and composing separately.

For the first time in his life, Wataru began to have someone else compose music for his words, and Rio began to have another writer put lyrics to his music.

Ren supposed that was when the first gap began to be felt by all of them.

Soon, Banri inherited his family farm, and true to his word, raised it out of its original condition. Ren was more than awed by the way the blonde had managed to bring an old dairy farm back into operation all the way from Tokyo with nothing but an internet connection and a phone.

However, running a dairy farm remotely was quite time consuming.

While they had stopped living together in the same sharehouse once LRFes was done, Ren had never felt the gap grow as wide as it was in the past couple of years.

He closed his eyes as the rain began to fall, going back to the time when he didn’t feel this lonely.

The rational part of him told him that he should be thankful that the others showed up to practice consistently, despite their pressing lives. And it was true, Ren never felt happier than when they had lives or sang together in practice.

But those times always seemed to end far quicker than he liked.

Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that he never seemed to see his friends outside of practice anymore.

As a feeling welled up in his heart, Ren put up his hand there, gaze on the ground slowly being covered in raindrops. The more he thought about it, the harder he clenched his fist.

He wanted to go back to when they all first met. To when they were just college students with nothing but dreams and optimism taking on the world. To dumb kids who did whatever they wanted, meeting outside for sweets and drinks, sneaking into each other’s classes, going on impromptu trips Yuuto loved to call “training camps” where they just ended up playing and not practicing much…

Ren cast a look back up at the sky, squinting against the barrage of raindrops falling on his face.

Dark clouds obscured the sky, blotting out the twinkling stars from earlier that evening.

He couldn’t help but chuckle darkly at that.

It felt like it was a metaphor for his own life, with the way the clouds of adulthood seemed to block out the sparkling stars of his friendship. Now he felt like he was at the edge of an ever-growing chasm with his friends on the other side, their backs turned to him.

Sure, despite their busy lives, they all still made time for practice.

But till when?

Till when would Argonavis continue to be a priority for them?

Till when would they be together before life came knocking at the door?

“Isn’t that normal?” Nayuta had asked a few weeks earlier when Ren had given into his worries and called him out for a drink. “I don’t see my bandmates outside of practice, and practice is already too much,” the white-haired vocalist grumbled under his breath.

“Is that so…?” Ren sadly trailed off, looking down at his glass of beer.

Nayuta swirled the alcoholic beverage in his own glass as he raised an eyebrow at Ren’s tone. “I see no problem here,” he said to the bluenette. “If they’re showing up to practice, isn’t that enough to show they’re committed to the band?”

Ren allowed a moment for Nayuta’s words to sink in before forcing a grin. “Yeah, I suppose so.”

If Nayuta had any more worries, he chose not to pursue them, instead finishing his drink and leaving Ren alone in silence.

It wasn’t like he would understand. Gyroaxia had exploded in popularity, and with the backing of a massive company, none of them would ever have to do any other work for the rest of their lives and could dedicate all their time to the band.

Ren was envious.

He had thought of contacting Felix, since being a working adult for so long, the elder might have some good tips to share, but decided against it when he saw how busy the other was.

And here he was, alone in a park on a rainy day, having been cancelled on one by one by his friends.

Did they not know what today was?

Or did they just not care anymore since they didn’t have practice?

He exhaled to stop the lump from forming in his throat to no avail.

Perhaps he was the only one who still gave his everything to Argonavis…

He paused in front of a fountain as the rain began to let up, slowing down to a slight drizzle.

Ren allowed himself to smile softly as the happy memories flooded in.

It was here that they had numerous impromptu street lives over the years. He recalled singing with Yuuto and his guitar, the time where Wataru joined in with his bass as well, the time when Banri improvised a percussion with a box, the time Rio joined in with a keytar.

“Ren!”

He turned around as his name was called, and his eyes widened to see the three people standing there with umbrellas.

“Guys…”

“Sorry we cancelled, Ren,” Wataru sheepishly grinned. “But we managed to finish quickly so we could meet you here!”

“You did?” Ren softly asked.

Rio nodded. “Of course.”

Banri smiled widely. “We wouldn’t miss this day for the world!”

“I hope you can forgive us,” Wataru said. “Its been hard for you, hasn’t it?”

And once again, Wataru seemed to have seen right through him, pinpointing exactly what was bothering him lately.

“We may have become busy with work, and we’re sorry about that.”

Ren looked down as a lump began to form once again in his throat.

“Speaking of all of us…” Banri suddenly noticed.

“Where’s our glorious leader?” Rio wondered.

Upon Rio’s observation, Ren noticed that it was only the four of them there.

However, the sound of running shoes on the wet pavement behind them made them all turn around.

They found Yuuto hunched over, hands on his knees as he panted heavily. Water dripped from his hair, suggesting that he’d been caught in the rain not unlike Ren. His normally pristine look had gone to hell, as his blazer lay unbuttoned and his tie loose and hanging limply around his neck.

“Yu, you’re a mess,” Wataru commented.

“I…I…ran…so…much….” Yuuto panted, struggling to catch his breath. He threw his hands behind him. “I…went to the place…but Ren…wasn’t there…so I ran…”

“You could have just come here directly,” Rio pointed out. “This was where we were supposed to meet originally.”

“Wait, we were?”

Ren watched the four of them with wide eyes.

They came.

Even though they originally cancelled…

They still came.

He cast a look once again up at the sky, mouth falling open as he found a starry sparkly sky, seeming clearer than usual. No trace remained of the dark rainclouds that had previously obscured the sky, the only indication that it had rained being the fresh scent in the air and the drops dripping off the leaves in the park.

“It’s quite clear tonight, isn’t it?” Wataru commented.

Yuuto nodded. “Brings back memories, doesn’t it?”

“Has it really been that long?” Banri grinned.

Rio chose to stay silent, but a smile pulled at his lips as he turned his eyes to the stars.

That day, seven years ago, they had added Banri to their roster.

Seven years ago, the five of them had stood under a similar starry sky, writing their dreams into the stars.

Seven years ago this day, they had become Argonavis.

As Wataru began talking about bringing Ren and Yuuto inside to dry off, Rio began to look for places where they could get a drink on his phone and Banri began to tease Yuuto about his obvious oversight, Ren allowed himself to smile.

Perhaps this would be his new normal.

After all, no matter how he would like, they weren’t 18 anymore.

But perhaps it wouldn’t be so bad, since their bond from back then was as strong as ever.

Because stars shine even when obscured by dark clouds.


End file.
